"The Minute You're Gone" is a song written by Jimmy Gateley (often miscredited as "Gately" or "Gatelie"), a Nashville, Tennessee based fiddle player and singer, for Sonny James in 1963.

Bob Morgan, executive A&R producer from Epic met with Richard's A&R producer Norrie Paramor and Richard to map out recording plans and brought 50 songs of US origin for them to screen.

About 15 songs were selected and plans were made to record in New York, Nashville and Chicago according to the different styles of the songs selected, which ranged from pop-country, pure country, ballad and medium tempo.

[3][5][6][7] "The Minute You're Gone" provided Richard with his eighth UK number one single.

[1] However, at the corresponding time in the US, Epic curiously chose to release the soft ballad "Again" (another of his Nashville recorded tracks) as a single with "The Minute You're Gone" as the B-side.